Chapter 26 Bro, I Want to Be Lifted High

Chapter 26: Big Brother, Lift Me Up High!

The twins, twelve years old, were of average good looks. Their clothing and demeanor were as plain and unadorned as their parents', even somewhat rustic.

Were it not for Shi Zai's timid, murmuring "Mom and Dad," anyone would have taken the couple for the twins' grandparents.

In stark contrast, Shi Zai was the best-looking in the family, yet this handsome, warm-hearted boy was the least favored. "Unfavored" barely scratched the surface; as Shi Zai once put it, he was utterly ignored, as if he didn't exist within the family.

Shi Zai saw their struggles, but the family simply failed to see him.

He was like that shy puppy again, just as when they first met, though he tried hard to maintain a calm expression. Shi Zai turned to Shu Yangkuo and Yang Yun, saying, "I'll buy some clothes for my younger siblings. I'll be right back." With that, he dashed across the street.

Midway, perhaps due to uneven ground, he nearly stumbled. Shu Yangkuo instinctively reached out his hands, then silently withdrew them.

Though only a dozen meters away, the scene across the street was painfully clear. Shu Yangkuo couldn't bear to watch any longer. The person he cherished, whom he wanted to elevate to the heavens, was cowering before his own parents, desperately trying to please them, yet receiving not even a fleeting glance. Shu Yangkuo took a deep breath, clenched his fists, and led Yang Yun across the road—he couldn't leave his precious one so isolated and helpless.

As Shi Zai's shoulder met a warm touch, his chilled bones and blood rapidly warmed, then grew scalding hot. He looked up, finally composed, and wanted to speak to his parents again. Even though they hadn't acknowledged him at all, pulling his siblings closer as if he were some malevolent spirit, before he could hesitantly open his mouth, his mother snapped, "Don't associate with unsavory people. Our family has suffered enough." Then, she and her husband hurried away with the twins, who were equally indifferent to Shi Zai, naturally not waiting for him to buy clothes.

A tall figure suddenly crouched before him. Shi Zai blinked through tear-blurred eyes:

"Big Brother?"

"My dear, get on my back."

"Mom spoke to me just now. Was she worried about me?"

"…"

Shu Yangkuo hoisted him onto his back, gripping his slender legs tightly. Under the comforting warmth of his palms, the person on his back gradually stopped crying and the subtle trembling. He sighed softly, unable to answer Shi Zai's earlier question.

This family clearly regarded Shi Zai as some kind of "evil omen." Who knew what had happened when he was born?

After quickly passing the couple holding the twins' hands, Shu Yangkuo shifted Shi Zai into his arms, cradling him with one hand and gently stroking his back with the other. He pressed Shi Zai's head against his chest, preventing him from looking longingly at the couple again.

His precious one was a "lucky star," hard-won. Even without the warmth of parental affection, Shu Yangkuo could carry him, hold him, and give him all the love of a home.

No matter how yearning or naive Shi Zai was, he finally gave up hope at this point. They guarded against him, even resented him for reasons he couldn't grasp. From childhood, Shi Zai had rarely appeared before the couple. He vaguely knew he was a thorn in their side.

He used to think that once he grew up and became capable, things would get better. But it turned out to be utterly meaningless.

That sentence just now wasn't concern at all. Shi Zai gave a bitter smile, realizing with clarity that it was a warning—a warning to stay far away from them. But how could they call these two people, whose eyes were filled only with him, "unsavory"?

Shi Zai wiped away his tears, gripping Shu Yangkuo's clothes with one hand and reaching out with the other for Yang Yun to hold:

"Big Brother, Little Brother."

"Mm."

"I'm here, Little Brother. We love you, so much."

"I love you both too. Hmph, I have my own Big Brother and Little Brother now. I won't pay attention to them anymore."

Having said this, Shi Zai buried his head and couldn't help but cry softly again.

Just now, as they passed that family, Shi Zai caught a glimpse of his parents out of the corner of his eye. He foolishly smiled, as if to say he had people who loved him, but was met with their disdainful looks. He wondered why he cared so much. When he was little, his older siblings often found their parents' affection annoying, but he waited eagerly for even a word of care.

Perhaps it was true: the less you're loved, the more you crave it.

But now, Shi Zai decided to completely step out of the shadow. Otherwise, it would be unfair to his Big Brother and Little Brother, who loved him like their own lives.

Still, for a boy who had yearned for nineteen years, this decision wasn't easy.

In his ears, the little "pink dumpling" was trying hard to suppress his sobs, and Big Brother was taking subtle, almost imperceptible deep breaths. Shi Zai's heart no longer felt tight; it was filled again with his Big Brother and Little Brother, flowing like a spring once more. He lifted his face and saw that Shu Yangkuo's eyes were indeed red-rimmed. Shi Zai wiped his tears:

"Big Brother, Little Brother, I've truly made up my mind. I'll never think about them again. I have my own family. I'm starting anew."

"My dear."

The gentle patting on his back didn't stop. Shu Yangkuo called him "my dear" again softly, holding the back of his head to make him look up:

"Look at Big Brother."

"Mm, even if I'm not looking, my eyes are full of you and Little Brother."

"…Children are born because parents desire them, not because children choose to enter the world. No little one can decide whether they want to come to this world. Since you're here, live a lifetime for yourself, not for those who gave birth to you. Because they didn't have you for your sake—they had you for the sake of having children. Who you are doesn't matter to them. Every little one is like this. Do you understand, Xiao Zai?"

"…Mm-hmm."

"They want children, people who are beneficial to them. Once this condition isn't met, not many parents will be selfless."

Shi Zai nodded silently. He understood the logic. It was like obedient versus rebellious children: when they grow up, parents naturally favor those who bring money home or make them look good. People are just like that. Even his relationship with Big Brother and Little Brother began because he initially sought something beneficial.

But with his own parents, he had been condemned to "death" from the moment he was born.

If possible, his parents probably wished they could stuff him back into the womb and prevent his birth.

Yes, he couldn't choose his birth, but he could find people who truly loved him.

Like the tree Shu Yangkuo planted for them: it couldn't choose where to take root, but even on a high cliff, it could have its own sky.

Shu Yangkuo withdrew his gaze from the horizon, holding the person in his arms tightly, his palm pressed against Shi Zai's back:

"My dear, you were Big Brother's first sight."

Hearing this, Shi Zai lifted his face again, his eyes meeting two intense, burning gazes. The tall, taciturn man shyly turned his face away slightly but quickly looked back, his gentle, profound, loving eyes enveloping Shi Zai completely, sealing him off from wind and rain, leaving only brilliant sunshine. Shi Zai saw himself reflected in Shu Yangkuo's eyes. He was truly different from the person he was before meeting them.

First sight?

So it was even earlier than "liked you all along."

The boy in Shu Yangkuo's eyes gradually smiled, his eyes crinkling. Shi Zai raised both hands:

"Big Brother, I want to be lifted high! Like at the very beginning!"

"…"

With strong arms, Shi Zai was lifted high, laughing heartily. He was Big Brother's first sight! His first choice! His utmost importance! No longer an afterthought or nonexistent in others' eyes! He had his own unique home and world!

The little pup's emotions were so infectious that Shu Yangkuo couldn't help but laugh too, tossing him into the air and catching him. The little pup laughed and shrieked with delight, so happy that his nose got sweaty, demanding to be lifted high again and again, calling it "flying like a plane." Shu Yangkuo lifted him and spun around a few times.

Shi Zai was incredibly happy. The envy he felt as a child no longer existed, for he had become someone others envied.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw several children also begging their parents to lift them high.

Yang Yun grabbed at Shi Zai's legs from below, yelling:

"Big Brother, Little Brother, I want to play too! Hurry, hurry!"

"Okay."

Shu Yangkuo set the puppy down, then lifted the bird without wings high, letting him experience the joy of soaring once more.

On the endless shady path, laughter echoed continuously—"Hahaha."

Yang Yun, being small, felt a genuine illusion of taking flight as he was raised high into the air, flailing his legs excitedly. He called down to Shi Zai, who was teasing him:

"Little Brother, you have to remember what I told you—Big Brother and I love you because you deserve it!"

"I'll remember! I promise!"

"Little bro, I'll never get married in my whole life, I'll stay by your side forever!"

"…"

The playful grabbing suddenly stopped. Shi Zai looked up at the little "pink dumpling" high above. Though only sixteen, he'd spoken such words. In those round, adorable eyes—not as intense as Shu Yangkuo's, but clear and sincere—Shi Zai saw the same deep affection directed at him.

Shi Zai nipped the little "pink dumpling's" arm, making him shriek with laughter from above.

They changed places, laughing and giggling endlessly in Shu Yangkuo's hands and arms. Shi Zai felt genuinely carefree and happy. If he had a past life, he must have spent over a thousand years cultivating the blessings he enjoyed today.

When he'd laughed enough, Shi Zai finally cupped Shu Yangkuo's face:

"Big Brother, the things you said earlier… did you go through something similar in the past?"

"...No."

Yang Yun, holding Shi Zai's hand nearby, cut in:

"Well, yes and no! It was worse than Little Brother, even… sibling strife—"

"Yang Yun."

Warned by a low voice, Yang Yun made a funny face at Shi Zai, and the two giggled quietly together.

Shi Zai slid down from Shu Yangkuo's embrace and walked close together with Yang Yun, whispering and chatting. But today, Shi Zai wasn't curious—they both knew Big Brother valued his pride and didn't want old wounds brought up. Shi Zai believed Shu Yangkuo would tell him himself one day.

Seeing the two younger ones like this again, Shu Yangkuo didn't mind at all. He hailed a cab by the roadside and got them inside.

Twenty minutes later, Shi Zai and Yang Yun were having the time of their lives at the water park.

From paddleboats to roller coasters, jet skiing to water gun fights… scenes Shi Zai had never dared imagine in his life were brought to life by Big Brother one by one that afternoon. He truly felt like a child again, given the childhood others would envy.

No longer standing like a background character in the corner.

No longer pitifully going hungry.

No longer too afraid to even speak.

No longer sleeping in a graveyard at night.

…

Why dwell on those thoughts? Enjoy the moment! Soak in the overflowing love that belonged only to him now.

Shu Yangkuo stayed close the entire time, partly to take photos and record memories, partly to prevent the two from getting into fights… It was a bit exasperating. Even children under fifteen didn't bicker or fight as much as these two—one sixteen, the other nineteen—going at each other with water guns.

Both were soaked, arguing over who-knows-what, chasing and spraying each other fiercely with water guns, each complaining to Big Brother. It was hard to make out what they were saying, just hearing alternating cries of, "Big Brother, aren't you going to do something about him?"

Unable to take sides, Shu Yangkuo walked over and got sprayed by both of them—one shot each. Only then did the two start laughing and playing nicely again.

Shi Zai was still excited even after returning home that evening. The afternoon had been incredibly fun, and Yang Yun had even promised him something! He'd whispered it to Yang Yun earlier, but the stinky little ball not only refused—he'd squirted water at his butt!

Luckily, Yang Yun agreed in the end. Otherwise, Shi Zai would've hung that little bird from a tree branch!